TheCable

Frank Mba, spokesperson of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), says officers are not overwhelmed by the security challenges in the country.

Speaking on Wednesday at a roundtable discussion on internal security management organised by Cleen Foundation, a non-governmental organisation (NGO), Mba said the police are only challenged by the nature of security challenges in the country.

“In all these issues of insecurity, the good news is that we all know the fact that great leaders are churned out in times of crises, challenges and difficulties,” he said.

“The security challenges in the country are huge, but they are certainly not insurmountable and so the police are not overwhelmed.

“Men and women of the Nigeria Police Force have the capacity, the will, the passion, the commitment and the zeal to deliver on their mandates to upturn insecurity and protect lives and properties of Nigerians.”

Mba appealed to parents and other members of the society to mentor children and youths appropriately, adding that it would contribute to making the work of the police easier.

“There is a call to parents and to those in charge of socialisation processes, like community leaders, religious and traditional rulers, the media and school authorities to contribute in mentoring the young ones appropriately,” he said

“Also, political leaders should tackle factors that drive crimes such as unemployment, poverty, economic and political exclusion.

“If they deal with these issues, it will be easier for the police, working with the military and other law-enforcement agencies, to actually deal with the challenges of insecurity.”

Ruth Olofin, acting executive director, Cleen Foundation, urged the government to work out measures to address the activities of “non-state armed groups”.

“Government is trying because what we are facing is that there is an erosion of security threats facing Nigeria. When government deploys its strategies to face terrorism or terrorists, it also has the separatist groups to tackle and that could be overwhelming,” Olofin said.

“Government should declare non-state armed groups as what they truly are as long as they are disrupting the peace and security of the country.”